Suicide brings LGBTQ, bullying concerns to forefront

More than 20 University students lie outside of the Rutgers
Student Center on the College Avenue campus during an LGBTQ rally
for safer spaces and communal acceptance. The rally was in response
to Tyler Clementi's suicide on Sept. 23 after his roommate Dharun
Ravi took a webcam video of him participating in sexual activities
with another man.

When the Middlesex County Court indicted Dharun Ravi with
invasion of privacy and tampering with evidence, family of the late
first-year student Tyler Clementi said the justice system needed to
prove whether the 15 counts are true so that accountability could
be established under law.

"We are eager to have the process move forward for justice in
this case and to reinforce the standards of acceptable conduct in
our society," according to the statement.

The charges against Ravi are the latest addition to the ongoing
situation that erupted after Ravi streamed a webcam video of
Clementi participating in sexual actions with another man.

Clementi committed suicide on Sept. 23 by jumping from the
George Washington Bridge.

Photo: Cameron Stroud

Some members of the campus community mourned the loss of their
classmate, Tyler Clementi, with a candlelight vigil on College
Avenue.

"Our University community feels the pain of his loss, and I know
there is anger and outrage about the earlier incident," University
President Richard L. McCormick said. "I ask that all members of the
Rutgers community honor his life by committing to the values of
civility, dignity, compassion and respect for each other."

Various media invaded the University campus as lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) groups rallied for
safe spaces and communal acceptance on the College Avenue
campus.

"We're here. We're queer. We want safety in our homes," the more
than 20 people lying outside the Rutgers Student Center said during
a Sept. 30 LGBTQ rally.

The death of Clementi and the resulting LGBTQ protests occurred
during the start of Project Civility, a University initiative to
improve ethical conduct among the students.

Robert O'Brien, an assistant instructor in the Department of
Anthropology, said this was the reason why a rally needed to take
place.

"We need to point out that civility requires acknowledgment of
oppressions and inequalities that many people walk though their
days not experiencing," O'Brien said. "We are rejecting the notion
of civility without safety and putting our bodies on the line to do
so."

While some in the University community sprung to action, others
mourned Clementi's death on Oct. 3 with a candlelight vigil and
reflected on the life of their lost classmate.

"In the wake of recent tragedies [on our campus] and schools and
universities nationwide, much kindness is extended to the Rutgers
community," said Jenny Kurtz, University director of diverse
community affairs. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to all the
communities and individuals impacted by these events."

But whether students yelled or prayed, all of their actions came
under the national spotlight after numerous media organizations
closely reported Clementi's death in the weeks following.

Some students said the extensive media coverage provided a
chance to solve issues of inequality and discrimination in the
homosexual community.

"A lot of people all over the country are killing themselves for
being gay because they are being tormented," said Chelsea Stahl, a
School of Arts and Sciences sophomore. "I think by the media
shedding light on it, it will show the problem and hopefully people
will be less inclined to do so."

Others attacked the media for being intrusive and felt nothing
positive would result in their coverage.

"[The media] almost always have an agenda. So I doubt that they
actually cared that this boy died and that these two [students] are
suffering the consequences for it," said Maria Allen, a School of
Arts and Sciences senior. "It was more politicized, and they used
it for their own purposes."

But following a town hall meeting, which attracted these media
outlets, politicians and famous alumni, students said the coverage
of Clementi's death diminished.

"Now news groups have left, people are talking about it in a
much lesser degree," said Kailynn Barbour, a School of Arts and
Sciences junior.

School of Arts and Sciences first-year student Malcolm Bare
agreed with Barbour, saying Clementi's suicide disappeared from
conversations as the fall semester came to a close.

"I feel like students are changing their focus [to] exams than
the tragedy that happened a couple of weeks ago," he said.

Although the national media halted detailing Clementi's death
and the resulting rallies, articles about anti-bullying legislation
and gender-neutral housing show the effect of the first-year
student's suicide never left.

"There are a lot of issues perhaps we don't think about for the
average student, but for the LGBTQ community and particularly the
transgender community, it's a huge issue," said Executive Director
of Residence Life Joan Carbone, regarding the implementation of
gender-neutral housing.

At a University Senate meeting on Jan. 31, Co-Founder of Project
Civility Kathleen Hull said the University could learn from the
details of Clementi's death as a way to improve moral and ethical
standards.

"Any community can take a tragedy and shape it to help move on
and better [promote] civility on campus," Hull said.

Six months after Clementi's death, School of Arts and Sciences
first-year student Enrico Cabredo gave proof to Hull's statement as
students again reflected on their classmate's suicide.

"As tragic as Tyler's suicide was, it made us really close, and
I've made some of the best friends of my entire life," said
Cabredo, a Davidson C Hall resident and Clementi's classmate.
"[Prior to Clementi's death], nobody had [regarded] that hall as
sort of a family. [We were] a group of young people who had never
had this happen before."